Soft dismissals, unforced errors have led to the demise of the Bangladesh top-order in recent times, and it was no exception against New Zealand in their third ICC World Cup fixture in Chennai yesterday.

It was not uncommon to see the Bangladesh top four batter sent packing inside 13 overs, given it marked the seventh instance in the last 10 ODIs where Bangladesh went on to lose four wickets before reaching three figures.

But what followed, after skipper Shakib Al Hasan steadied the ship Mushfiqur Rahim, was the most frustrating from the Bangladesh perspective.

Veterans with five World Cup experience, Shakib and Mushfiqur did make their experience count somewhat, but the job was far from done for the two Bangladesh stalwarts when the former faltered.

At 145 for four after 29 overs, knowing that they have a long tail, the situation required Shakib and Mushfiqur to play sensibly for another five to six overs to lay the platform of a near 270.

A while earlier, Shakib had suffered a cramp and he proceeded without wearing a cap or a helmet in a never-before-seen act from the ace all-rounder.

While it was not surprising to see the Bangladesh skipper opting to aim for the boundaries to compensate for his compromised running ability, his overtly aggressive approach did not reflect his wealth of experience.

Following drinks break, spinner Rachin Ravindra was on the receiving end of a four and a six from Shakib. The next over, a top-edge off a Lockie Ferguson delivery resulted in a six over backward square leg as Shakib reached forty but he paid the price next ball, having played one shot too many.

Eventually, Mushfiqur Rahim's 66 and a rearguard action from seasoned campaigner Mahmudullah Riyad, who scored an unbeaten 49-ball 41 on his first appearance in the ongoing event, gave their bowlers something to defend.

Going back to the innings' start, Liton Das chose to mark his birthday with a golden duck, caught at deep fine leg, and that too in the first delivery of the innings bowled by Trent Boult.

Bangladesh, thus, were on the back foot from the onset on what turned out to be a batting-friendly surface. And despite all the noise that the surface at the MA Chidambaram stadium was primed to be a spinner's paradise, New Zealand pacers eventually shared seven of nine scalps.

Bangladesh batters can only blame themselves at the end of day. Young Tanzid Hasan Tamim timed a flick and found the fielder at the in-field after a promising 16 off 17 balls, while in-form Mehedi Hasa Miraz, in at number three, departed in similar fashion to Liton after a well-compiled 30.

The worst fear was coming true for Bangladesh, it seemed, once Najmul Hossain Shanto – who averaged 80-plus in last five ODIs – was the next to get out following another soft dismissal against the run of play. This time, off-spinner Glenn Phillips found his victim without much effort.

Apart from Mushfiqur, who fell to Matt Henry's brilliantly executed slower delivery that bounced low, none of the top six Bangladesh batters looked like they were up for an occasion of World Cup's magnitude.

The execution was vividly lacking on the day, but the team management's decision to keep shuffling the top-order is also bound to come under heavy scrutiny.